Setting up incubator for polyp bailout experiment, part II
date created 20210611; date last revised 20210614 removed moon light from hydra 52ai light type list
this post is the sequel to an earlier post about incubator setup planning
the previous post (part I) was for note taking on incubator dimensions and potential tank configuration
this post describes the ‘final’ configuration. This includes light, temperature, and tank/carboy configuration
All containers with water (carboys, bailout tanks, 6well plates) are kept in plastic bins to prevent flooding. All plastic bins are white so bin color (and potential changes in light reflected) is constant among treatments. All electronics are on the top shelf to prevent water damage. Pictures below
temperature - set to ~28.5C (results in ~26.5C water temp inside tanks which is similar to the water tables)
Light (2 hydra AI 52 lights)
- Had to factory reset lights (recommended when moving lights from one tank to another)
- guide on LED Light determination Reference
Parameters-Ramp-Schedule
note: want to keep light constant for settlement experiments but the 10min ramp was the shortest option
- Morning Ramp: 6am-6:10am
- Peak: 6:10am-6pm
- Evening Ramp: 6pm-6:10pm
Light-Settings
Lights were set so that the light levels near the 6 well settlement plates and the bailout containers is 30-40 umol/m2/s. Info on water table light conditions here.
Type of light | Percent - top light | Percent - bottom light |
---|---|---|
UV | 3% | 2% |
Violet | 3% | 2% |
Royal | 3% | 2% |
Blue | 3% | 2% |
Green | 3% | 2% |
Deep Red | 3% | 2% |
Cool Light | 3% | 2% |
Carboys
Two 2-gallon carboys are on the bottom shelf in a plastic bin. One carboy has mixing tank seawater (~32.5psu, not from the recirculating tanks so elemental composition is known). The high salinity carboy has mixing tank seawater with extra Fritz RPM salt so the salinity is adjusted to ~78psu. Seawater from both was filtered over a 0.22um filter.
Tanks for Bailout
- 2L clear, circular plastic containers (height: 10in, diameter: 4.25in)
Mesh bailout chambers
- Plastic salad dressing to-go cups with 150um mesh holes in the bottom and 3 around the side. After the mesh was hot glued onto the plastic the chambers were soaked in water for 30min so leachate is completed before they come in contact with corals.
Lessons learned during bailout chamber construction
- small lengths (~1in) of pvc and plastic tubing (~1in diameter) sank. We had some success floating these with egg crate (taped some of the small squares and the perimeter of the egg crate to improve buoyancy but the egg crate took up too much space which would allow for fewer bailout chambers/tank). We opted not to float pvc or plastic tubing with styrofoam to prevent contamination. Wrapping aquarium tubing around the plastic or pvc as “floaties” did not work either (both ends of the plastic tubing were taped over to prevent flooding).
we will rotate tank and 6well plate configuration everyday to account for variation in light intensity
photos
top of incubator with 6well settlement plates
bottom of incubator with carboys and bailout tanks
close up of 2L bailout tank with mesh chambers